The Sodium and Potassium Exchange between Intact Frogs and Their Environment

Intact living frogs (Rana pipiens) were partially immersed in dilute salt solution labeled with K⁴² or Na²⁴ or, alternatively, injected with Ringer’s fluid containing the appropriate isotope and then partially immersed in unlabeled dilute salt. Before isotopic equilibrium, the animals were sacrificed and specific activities of K⁴² and Na²⁴ were determined for medium, skin, plasma, and other tissues. With Na²⁴, entering from the medium or escaping to the medium, specific activities of the skin approach that of the plasma. For K⁴², entering from the medium, the specific activity exceeds that of the plasma. The results are interpreted as indicating that the exchange rate for Na is greater plasma to skin than medium to skin, with the reverse situation for K. Values are given for average Na, K, and Cl contents of the various organ systems.     

Relationship between Leaf Structure and Gas Exchange in Wheat Leaves at Different Insertion Levels

Net photosynthesis rate (P_n), stomatal conductance to CO₂ andresidual conductance to CO₂ were measured in the last six leaves(the sixth or flag leaf and the preceding five leaves) of Triticumaestivum L. cv. Kolibri plants grown in Mediterranean conditions.Recently fully expanded leaves of well-watered plants were alwaysused. Measurements were made at saturating photosynthetic photonflux density, and at ambient CO₂ and O₂ levels. The specificleaf area, total organic nitrogen content, some anatomical characteristics,and other parameters, were measured on the same leaves usedfor gas exchange experiments. A progressive xeromorphic adaptation in the leaf structure wasobserved with increasing leaf insertion levels. Furthermore,mesophyll cell volume per unit leaf area (V_mes/A) decreasedby 52·6% from the first leaf to the flag leaf. Mesophyllcell area per unit leaf area also decreased, but only by 24·5%.However, nitrogen content per unit mesophyll cell volume increasedby 50·6% from the first leaf to the flag leaf. This increasecould be associated to an observed higher number of chloroplastcross-sections per mm² of mesophyll cell cross-sectional areain the flag leaf: values of 23000 in the first leaf and 48000in the flag leaf were obtained. P_n per unit leaf area remainedfairly constant at the different insertion levels: values of33·83±0·93 mg dm^–2 h^–1 and32·32±1·61 mg dm^–2 h^–1 wereobtained for the first leaf and the flag leaf, respectively.Residual conductance, however, decreased by 18·2% fromthe first leaf to the flag leaf. Stomatal conductance increasedby 41·7%. The steadiness in P_n per unit leaf area across the leaf insertionlevels could be mainly accounted for by an opposing effect betweena decrease in V_mes/A and a more closely packed arrangement ofphotosynthetic apparatus. Adaptative significance of structuralchanges with increasing leaf insertion levels and the steadinessin P_n per unit leaf area was studied. Key words: Photosynthesis, structure, wheat     

Leaf Gas Exchange Characteristics in Relation to Leaf Canopy Position of Myrica faya in its Native Environment (Tenerife, Canary Islands)

Abstract: Diurnal courses of gas exchange were measured throughout one year in fully expanded current-year leaves in the uppermost canopy (sun leaves, 18 m above ground) and in the lower canopy (shade leaves, 12 m above ground) of Myrica faya Ait., a dominant component of the Canarian laurel forest in Tenerife, Canary Islands, Spain.
M. faya showed large differences between sun and shade leaves in gas exchange characteristics (about 50 % of maximum carbon assimilation rate (A_max) reduction in shade leaves, but this reduction can be higher on specific days) that were modulated by strong light attenuation and high leaf area index (LAI) of the stand. This species presented low A_max, about 10 μmol m^-2 s^-1, high maximum transpiration (E, 8 mmol m^-2 s^-1) and stomatal conductance (g_s, 750 mmol m^-2 s^-1) and very low instantaneous water use efficiency (WUE, mean maximum 1.1 mmol mol^-1) and A/g_s (mean maximum 23.5 μmol mol^-1). M. faya responded to high air vapour pressure deficit (VPD), decreasing its g_s but maintaining relatively high values of A and E during the studied period. Stomatal response to VPD showed a higher sensitivity than its congeners, M. cerifera, and Laurus azorica, tree species co-occurring in the Canarian laurel forest. In general, all these gas exchange characteristics lead us to consider this species more similar to subtropical plants of humid regions than to species of the Mediterranean region.     

Multiple Sites of Gas Exchange

SYNOPSIS. For many years the general body surface has been recognizedas the primitive site of respiratory gas exchange in the animalkingdom. Even in simple animals such as the sea anemones, however,some specialization has occurred. In epifaunal species the tentacularcrown appears to be the major site of gas exchange while inone infaunal species dermal papillae are more important. Inboth, the columnar body wall remains an additional site of O₂uptake. In the polychaete annelids an evolutionary trend can be seenfrom the predominance of the general body surface over simple,metameric gills to the predominance of highly specialized andbranched anterior gills over the general body surface. n theoligochaetes reversion to the general body surface was followedin at least one species to specialization of the tail regionto form a "lung." Multiple sites clearly exist in the molluscs, but their relativeimportance is poorly known. Several sites exist in the echinoderms,the best known being the approximately equal allocation of O₂uptake between modified tube feet and respiratory trees in theholothurians. Multiple sites of gas exchange persist even inthe crustaceans, in temporal as well as spatial dimensions.Water breathers revert to cutaneous O₂ uptake following a molt,and air breathers have evolved an array of gas exchangers adaptedto their new medium. This array is so diverse that it does notprovide a single selection pressure for hemocyanin O₂ bindingproperties which, when compared broadly, remain indistinguishablefrom those of water breathers found in similar thermal regimes.     

Gas Exchange in Renal Failure: II—Pulmonary Gas Exchange during Peritoneal Dialysis

Blood gas analysis studies have been made in patients undergoing peritoneal dialysis. It has been shown that oxygen tensions are reduced when fluid has been run into the peritoneal cavity and that this fall in Pao₂ is reversed after running out the dialysate. The change in Pao₂ is greater with 2-litre than with 1-litre cycles.     

Models for Cutaneous Gas Exchange and Transport

SYNOPSIS. Models suited for quantitative analysis of cutaneousgas exchange and transport with particular emphasis on diffusionlimitation are discussed. I. The diffusive transfer of gasesbetween body and environment can be compared to diffusion acrossa homogeneous flat tissue sheet characterized by a diffusionconductance or diffusing capacity (D). II. A flat barrier separatingthe medium from blood flow is a widely useful model. The characteristic parameter is theratio , where rß is the effective solubility of the gas in blood. A high value means predominant perfusionlimitation; low signifies diffusion limitation. III. In some conditions, as in still wateror at body-soil contact, a considerable diffusion resistancein the medium may become important. IV. Unequal distributionof D to may strongly reduce gas exchange efficiency. V. Diffusive arteriovenous shuntingof gases may lead to additional reduction of gas exchange efficiency.VI. The parallel arrangement of skin circulation with respectto tissue circulation (in contrast to the arrangement in seriespresent in fish gills and in tetrapod lungs) leads to mixingof arterialized with venous blood and reduced efficiency ofblood flow in gas transport.     

Correlation between CAM-Cycling and Photosynthetic Gas Exchange in Five Species of Talinum (Portulacaceae)

Photosynthetic gas exchange and malic acid fluctuations were monitored in 69 well-watered plants from five morphologically similar species of Talinum in an investigation of the ecophysiological significance of the Crassulacean acid metabolism (CAM)-cycling mode of photosynthesis. Unlike CAM, atmospheric CO₂ uptake in CAM-cycling occurs exclusively during the day; at night, the stomata are closed and respiratory CO₂ is recaptured to form malic acid. All species showed similar patterns of day-night gas exchange and overnight malic acid accumulation, confirming the presence of CAM-cycling. Species averages for gas exchange parameters and malic acid fluctuation were significantly different such that the species with the highest daytime gas exchange had the lowest malic acid accumulation and vice versa. Also, daytime CO₂ exchange and transpiration were negatively correlated with overnight malic acid fluctuation for all individuals examined together, as well as within one species. This suggests that malic acid may effect reductions in both atmospheric CO₂ uptake and transpiration during the day. No significant correlation between malic acid fluctuation and water-use efficiency was found, although a nonsignificant trend of increasing water-use efficiency with increasing malic acid fluctuation was observed among species averages. This study provides evidence that CO₂ recycling via malic acid is negatively correlated with daytime transpirational water losses in well-watered plants. Thus, CAM-cycling could be important for survival in the thin, frequently desiccated soils of rock outcrops on which these plants occur.     

Chain Correlation between Variables of Gas Exchange and Yield Potential in Different Winter Wheat Cultivars

Variables of gas exchange of flag leaves and grain yield potentials of five representative winter wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) cultivars varied greatly across different development stages under the same management and irrigation. The cultivars with high yield potential had higher net photosynthetic rate (P _N), PPFD (photosynthetic photon flux density) saturated photosynthetic rate (P _sat), stomatal conductance (g _s), and maximum apparent quantum yield of CO₂ fixation (_m,app) than those with low grain yield, but their dark respiration rate (R _D) and compensation irradiance (I _c) were remarkably lower. Compared with overall increase of yield potential of 71 % from low yield cultivars to high yield ones, P _N, P _sat, _m,app, and g _s were 13, 19, 57, and 32 % higher, respectively; but R _D and I _c decreased by 19 and 76 %, respectively. Such difference was evidently large during anthesis stage (e.g., P _N by 33 %), which indicated that this period could be the best for assisting further selection for better cultivars. However, transpiration rate (E) and water use efficiency (WUE) differed only little. At different development stages, especially at anthesis, P _N and P _sat were positively correlated with _m,app, g _s, and yield potential, and negatively correlated with R _D and I _c. Thus the high-yield-potential winter wheat cultivars possess many better characters in photosynthesis and associated parameters than the low-yield cultivars.     

Exchange of glutamine-217 to glutamate of Clostridium limosum exoenzyme C3 turns the asparagine-specific ADP-ribosyltransferase into an arginine-modifying enzyme

C3-like ADP-ribosyltransferaseses are produced by Clostridium species, Bacillus cereus, and various Staphylococcus aureus strains. The exoenzymes modify the low-molecular-mass GTPases RhoA, B, and C. In structural studies of C3-like exoenzymes, an ARTT-motif (ADP-ribosylating turn-turn motif) was identified that appears to be involved in substrate specificity and recognition (Han, S., Arvai, A. S., Clancy, S. B., Tainer, J. A. (2001) J. Mol. Biol. 305, 95-107). Exchange of Gln217, which is a key residue of the ARTT-motif, to Glu in C3 from Clostridium limosum results in inhibition of ADP-ribosyltransferase activity toward RhoA. The mutant protein is still capable of NAD-binding and possesses NAD+ glycohydrolase activity. Whereas recombinant wild-type C3 modifies Rho proteins specifically at an asparagine residue (Asn41), Gln217Glu-C3 is capable of ADP-ribosylation of poly-arginine but not poly-asparagine. Soybean trypsin inhibitor, a model substrate for many arginine-specific ADP-ribosyltransferases, is modified by the Gln217Glu-C3 transferase. Also in C3 ADP-ribosyltransferases from Clostridium botulinum and B. cereus, the exchange of the equivalent Gln residue to Glu blocked asparagine modification of RhoA but elicited arginine-specific ADP-ribosylation. Moreover, the Gln217Glu-C3lim transferase was able to ADP-ribosylate recombinant wild-type C3lim at Arg86, resulting in decrease in ADP-ribosyltransferase activity of the wild-type enzyme. The data indicate that the exchange of one amino acid residue in the ARTT-motif turns the asparagine-modifying ADP-ribosyltransferases of the C3 family into arginine-ADP-ribosylating transferases.     

Gas Exchange and Flowering in Verticillium-wilted Pepper Plants

In Navarra, Northern Spain, Verticillium dahliae Kleb. is one of the pathogens that causes drastic reductions in pepper production. The aim of this study therefore was to describe how infection by V. dahliae affects gas exchange during the flowering of pepper in order to determine some possible factors contributing to the significant decrease of plant yield. Verticillium was inoculated when plants had started flowering. The first leaf wilting symptoms appeared on day 18 after inoculation, but leaf water potential rapidly decreased after infection. The inoculated plants produced more flowers than the controls between 15 and 33 days after inoculation, but flower production declined after day 33. Inoculated plants also suffered more defoliation and chlorophyll degradation. Leaf conductance and photosynthesis clearly decreased in both groups of plants as a consequence of senescence, but the values in those inoculated were significantly lower. Results suggest that the decrease in photosynthesis was in part due to defoliation and chlorophyll degradation, as well as premature flower fall. These factors contributed to the negative effects of Verticillium infection on pepper yield.     

Kaempferol and its glycosides from Equisetum silvaticum L. from the Khanty-Mansi autonomous area

Three flavonoids were isolated from the aerial part of the wood horsetail (Equisetum silvaticum L.); two of them were found for the first time. The compounds were identified as kaempferol, kaempferol 3-O-β-D-galactopyranosyl-7-O-α-L-rhamnopyranoside and kaempferol 3-O-rutinosyl-7-O-L-rhamnopyranoside on the basis of the chemical transformations and IR, UV, ¹H-NMR and mass spectra.     

Relation between Pulmonary Gas Exchange and Closing Volume before and after Substantial Weight Loss in Obese Subjects

Relations between expiratory reserve volume (ERV), closing volume (CV) as a percentage of vital capacity (CV/VC%), and pulmonary gas exchange have been investigated in the sitting and supine postures in eight severely obese subjects before and after substantial weight loss. CV/VC% exceeded predicted values but did not change with posture or weight loss; the increase could have been owing to the smoking habits of the subjects. Arterial oxygen pressure (PaO₂) was significantly less in the supine than in the sitting posture and improved after weight loss in six subjects. The reduction in PaO₂ was correlated with the extent to which dependent airways were closed within the range of tidal breathing, shown by increasing negativity of ERV-CV as a percentage of VC. A good correlation was also found between PaO₂ and ERV, an easier measurement for routine use. Improvement of pulmonary gas exchange occurred only in those patients who lost weight to within 30% in excess of ideal.     

塔里木荒漠优势树种气体交换特性与环境因子的关系研究

在自然条件下对塔里木荒漠区优势树种--胡杨、灰叶胡杨的气体交换特性及其与环境因子的关系进行研究.结果表明:(1)在6～9月生长季,胡杨和灰叶胡杨的净光合速率(Pn)、蒸腾速率(Tr,除8月)日进程均为单峰曲线,胞间CO2浓度(GI)呈"V"字型曲线,Pn的峰值出现在12:00,Tr峰值明显滞后于Pn.生长季内胡杨各月份的Pn、水分利用率(WUE)、光能利用率(LUE)均高于灰叶胡杨,而Tr低于灰叶胡杨,气孔导度(Gs)相近.(2)气体交换与环境因子的统计分析表明,光量子通量密度(PPFD)是决定胡杨和灰叶胡杨Pn和Tr的主要环境因子,其次为气温(Tair).(3)灰叶胡杨对PPFD、Tair,、空气相对湿度(RH)的敏感性强于胡杨,通过高蒸腾耗水、低WUE来减轻高温干旱的伤害;胡杨通过主动调节Gs来控制蒸腾失水、提高光合效率,以较高的WUE和LUE适应日益干旱的荒漠环境,表现出较强的生态适应性.     

On the Gaseous Exchange of Ammonia between Leaves and the Environment: Determination of the Ammonia Compensation Point

Whole shoots of Phaseolus vulgaris L. and other species were exposed to a range of partial pressures of gaseous ammonia in air and the resulting fluxes were measured. Net uptake is linear with partial pressure in the range 5 to 50 nanobars and is zero at a finite partial pressure, termed the ammonia compensation point. Below the compensation point, ammonia (or possibly other volatile amines) is evolved by the leaves. The compensation points in several species are near the low partial pressures found in unpolluted air and approximate to the K_m of glutamine synthetase in vitro. In P. vulgaris L., the compensation point increases with temperature.     

Crop Specialization,Exchange and Robustness in a Semi-arid Environment

We compare the robustness of food supplies to annual variation in rainfall within two different agricultural systems: a generalist system with one type of agent who cultivates both maize and agave, and a specialist system composed of two types of agents who cultivate either maize or agave and are able to exchange. When mean rainfall is relatively high and less variable or relatively low and more variable, food supplies in the specialist system are more robust than in the generalist system. However, at intermediate levels of mean rainfall and variability, food supplies in the specialist system are less robust than those in the generalist system. Our analysis suggests that conflicts of interest and their associated costs constrain the development of specialization in some environments. When considering the robustness of social-ecological systems, it is important to consider “for whom a coupled social and ecological system is robust?”     

Microvascular Regulation of Cutaneous Gas Exchange in Amphibians

SYNOPSIS. Gas exchange across amphibian skin is regulated bythe cutaneous microcirculation. Parameters involved in regulatinggas exchange are capillary density, radius and blood flow. Changesin capillary density and radius should affect gas exchange byaltering the cutaneous diffusing capacity (D₂) while changesin capillary blood flow affect the perfusive conductance ofthe skin. A simple model predicts that the effect of capillary densitychanges on D₂ will become more pronounced as capillary densityand epidermal thickness decrease. Changes in capillary radiusshould have only a minor effect on D₂ Previous analyses havesuggested that cutaneous gas exchange is not significantly affectedby the perfusive conductance of the skin. Consequently, it hasbeen thought that changes in total capillary blood flow havelittle impact on cutaneous gas exchange. Earlier analyses, however,may have underestimated the importance of perfusive conductancein amphibian skin, primarily because functional heterogeneitiesin the microcirculation were not considered. The density of perfused capillaries is regulated in the footweb of Rana esculenta by environmental Po₂ and PCO₂, and alsoby lung ventilation. In Rana catesbeiana, capillary densityin the web decreases during air exposure. Chronic exposure toenvironmental hypoxia increases total capillary density in bullfrogtadpole skin. In Rana pipiens, regulation of cutaneous gas exchangeby environmental and pulmonary O₂ probably involves changesin total capillary blood flow.     

Two Steps of Gas Exchange in Leaf Photosynthesis

Photosynthesis and transpiration of excised leaves of Taraxacum officinale L. and a few other species of plants were measured, using an open gas analysis system. The rates of CO₂ uptake and transpiration increased in two steps upon illumination of stomata-bearing epidermis of these leaves at a light intensity of 50 mW × cm⁻². Abscisic acid inhibited only the second step of gas exchange. Illumination of the astomatous epidermis of hypostomatous leaves caused only the first step of gas exchange. These data indicate that the first and second steps arise from cuticular and stomatal gas exchange, respectively. The rate of the cuticular photosynthesis in a Taraxacum leaf reached saturation at a light intensity of 5 mW × cm⁻², and the rates of the stomatal photosynthesis and transpiration reached saturation at a higher intensity of 35 mW × cm⁻². The cuticular photosynthesis of a Taraxacum leaf was 18% of the stomatal photosynthesis at 50 mW × cm⁻² and 270% at 5 mW × cm⁻². The other species of leaves showed the same trend. The importance of cuticular CO₂ uptake in leaf photosynthesis, especially under low light intensity was stressed from these data.